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This is a build thread to document the progress on a 1977 Datsun 280z 2+2.
The previous owner had started stripping the car with intentions of restoring it but it ended up just sitting in a storage container. Before that, the car sat in someone's yard because of a lien against it and eventually a tree fell on the back portion busting out the rear glass and leaving a nice dent. Because the car has been sitting for so long, it has a bit of rust but nothing structural, like the frame rails, is damaged. We've never done any car restoration work before so any pointers would be appreciated.
The long term goal is to swap a LS v8 engine (probably a 5.3L or 4.8L), upgrade the suspension and brakes, and have a solid daily drivable Datsun.
Below is a list of what we have done to the car already:
-Stripped the interior and exterior
-removed the sound dampening material with some freeze spray and an air chisel
-removed the engine, tranny, and engine bay wiring
-misc metal work (cutting out the usual Z rust and welding in patch panels)
-coated all internal frame rails and cavities with east-woods internal frame rail coating or POR-15
Here is what we started with.
Inspiration / Goals
possible paint color
Pulling the engine - relatively easy.
When you don't have a load leveler, you just use screw drivers to make sure the chain doesn't slide!
Hopefully, the steering rack will be salvageable.
Cutting out the rust (floor pans, battery tray, and a big spot in the bumper area)
Here's some of the welding / patch panels. We used weld through primer so the the welds won't rust through.
Battery Compartment
The front nose area - patched on both sides
driver's side floorpan (not nearly as bad as passenger side just one patch panel near the seat mount).
Passenger floorpan - we fabricated a floorpan that was mainly plug welded in place and also replaced a rusty spot in the trans tunnel.
a shot of some POR-15 rust convertor work underneath the cowl panel.
That brings the project up to present time, lots of work to do still.

Hey all! I am new to these forums, also new to Datsuns!!
I am 20 years old, currently going to college and working two jobs, and working on my new baby in the meantime!
About two months ago I bought a 1975 280z. It came from South Carolina, so I had to get it brought all the way up to Connecticut for me. I searched all around for a Z for about two months before that but had no luck finding any car that wasn't overrun by rust. The northeast is terrible! Alas, I found my car in South Carolina and just had to have it.
It has some dents and some paint chips, a rusty passenger frame rail, and a damn sexy body! It ran pretty crappy when I first got it back but I was not too worried because I knew one of the first steps would be to engine swap!
The car sat in the shop for the past month, took it out a couple times, replaced the headlights (previous owner gave me lots of spare parts ), but mostly did LOTS research on engines to swap into my new baby.
I decided to swap in an rb20det. It seems like it fits my minor power goals, sounds pretty sick, and seems fairly within my mechanical expertise, with lots of help from my family .
Yesterday, we started disconnecting and unscrewing, and draining, and more disconnecting, getting ready to pull the engine and doing as much as I could before I had to get to work. Today we are gonna pull the engine and tranny. After it's out, the frame rail is being replaced, just bought a replacement from BAD DOGS this morning, hoping to get it by the weekend! Any undercarriage rust is getting tended to along with that god-awful undercoating that seems to overtake the entirety of the underneath of my car. It is gonna get done up real nice within the next month, while I save a little more to purchase the actual rb20det engine.
I already have researched and lined up the rear sump oil pan, walbro fuel pump, throttle cable, intercooler, downpipe that I have planned to purchase. Aftermarket exhaust manifold, and intake manifold will be replaced next summer, along with a turbo upgrade. but not worrying about that yet. I just wanna get this engine in and running!
Now, I do have some questions regarding this engine swap maybe some of you all could help me with.
Do you have any radiator suggestions?
Any body have any good recommendations as to where to purchase the RB? Right now I am vigorously searching through eBay.
Car is an automatic right now, swapping it to manual with the new RB, any pedal sets or advice at all that you recommend!
ANY ADVICE OR INFO YOU WOULD JUST LIKE TO SHARE?
Next summer, I am planning to do the bodywork, get some wide body fenders on my baby, fender mirrors, thick tires, a rear spoiler, racing seats, full harness, upgraded interior, gauges, dash and get a good paint job! This summer, my goal is to successfully swap the engine, and get my baby running nice and good.
It is gonna be a busy summer! Along with my Datsun project, in my family's shop, we are in the finishing stages of a Factory Five 818C kit car, which looks SICK. It's running an ej207 engine, weighs just about 2100 pounds right now and is pulling about 400hp without a tune yet! It is scary fast but a lot of fun! We have a 69' camaro drag car always in and out of the shop, holding the 632 outlaw world speed records right now, and another 2002 camaro drag car getting finished up. My family is very excited to help me through this project and hopefully I can expand my mechanical mind through my Datsun project!
I can't wait to keep you guys updated!!
I post all the pictures and updates on an instagram page, specifically for my datsun. You can all checkout the progress and updates through there if you're interested!
https://www.instagram.com/dirty_ddatsun/
Thanks for reading!!
-Julia

Hey there,
My name actually is Wesley despite my username, I've loved the Z series for an underwhelming 10 or so years. I'm new to the forum and I've dabbled in Classic Z Car forums for lotsa stock parts and rebuild resourcing. Recently I've been hunting and comparing prices on an RB25DET Series 2 (eng and trans) for my '72 240z who is lacking a working heart. I was recommend to this forum at a car event in Toronto, supposedly this is the hot spot for resto-mod and aftermarket Z builds!
I don't believe this is the correct place for an introduction so i'll ask away. Has anyone purchased a used engine from a Toronto locale engine store, and what were your thoughts on service and product reliability? Additionally I am wondering if anyone has had good experiences with overseas JDM imports.
I'm mostly concerned with accuracy of described product, product knowledge, and some form of warranty or guarantee. I've seen a 30-day limited warranty everywhere I've visited, and to be quite honest I will likely take the whole month to do the swap. That said, I may not be able to run the engine for testing before my warranty's up!
Thanks so much for the read, and a quick thanks to every poster in the RB series forum. SO MUCH INFORMATION
Wes

i am swapping a vg into a 1991 nissan stanza, the harness im using is from a 1994 maxima, this image is from the 94 maxima FSM
i need to know what these two plugs actually do and where the wires in them go. the plugs between the stanza body harness and the maxima engine harness are different (stanza body harness is a 4 pin, maxima engine harness is a 6 with 2 pins jumped for some reason) i have the stanza engine harness which i plan to steal the 4 pin plug from and mate that to the maxima engine harness to connect the two together.
i have managed to find some wiring diagrams (both appear to be engine harness/ECU pinout diagrams) that may or may not be of any use from the google machine. i am not sure what the plug might be labeled in them and i dont know if the plug has a traditional name that im missing, while im pretty familiar with wiring diagrams im having trouble finding the plug here (if its even accounted for)
i know the plugs contain a power connection that i definitely need to complete in order for the ECU and the distributor, tps, etc. to get power. if i cant get any information while i wait ill probably just complete the power connection and see what else isnt working while i go through the car. of course my multimeter has to crap out on me a week before i get into this harness work so ill be buying a new one of those but in the mean time i thought i would seek out the help of some experts.
here is a link to my build thread to maybe lend some insight into what im trying to accomplish: https://maxima.org/forums/3rd-generation-maxima-1989-1994/695655-turbo-vg-swapped-stanza.html

About me
I don't want to go too in depth and bore anyone, so feel free to skip. lol
My name is Kyle. I'm from Oregon City, Oregon. I'm in the USAF so that's why I am in CA. My current car is a 2008 Honda Accord V6 Manual 6 speed. It's a fantastic and very reliable car. Nice interior and sleek looking exterior. Just a good all around daily. And its the first car I have driven with a stick, and boy did I love it!
I have spent a couple years with it, but after increasing its power steadily, I realized the limits and problems with a forward driven car. Not to mention the absolute BS that is California smog. I was at the point of either spend the money on a power adder, or a new car.
I decided it wasn't worth pouring more money into a car that had such limitations. Especially in size and weight, she just wasn't very good in the twisties and back roads, so I decided I wanted a Rear driven pre- 1975 car. After a length of time searching, I couldn't believe what an awesome find a 240z was! A small, lightweight, Japanese car, pre- 75, endless parts, huge forum support, the list goes on! I was sold!
The Car
While on leave back in Oregon for a week, after 3 months of searching for a good deal on a 240z, one popped up for sale for $3,500. Super cheap! It was a 1972 240z with a Chevy small block V8, with a 3 speed automatic. A lot of people had interest, so decided I was done searching, and ready to start building; I bought her outright. Here is the AD:
The Good
-V8 Swap
-The Trunk area, engine bay, and I (hope) under fenders were sprayed with bedliner
-Body panels are straight
-Badge and side marker light delete
-Its a 240z
The Bad (As I have quickly, or slowly discovered)
-The paint is awful, and needs to be redone (Huge amount peeling)
-The windshield wiper doesn't work
-The heater doesn't work
-The Air Blower doesn't work
-The dash was cracked in multiple places
-The passenger door was missing the interior panel
-The engine, differential, and transmission were pissing oil
-The hatch strut was blown
-The lights were all extremely dim
-The car got less than 8 MPG
-Seats are cheap aftermarket ones. Fit nice though actually
-You have to SLAM. And I mean SLAM the doors to get them to shut. I'm scared I'll shatter the glass!
-The passenger window won't roll down
-Probably a lot more I'm forgetting
So yes, the car needed work. A lot of it. Was it awesome to drive and own a V8 car? Yes. Yes it was.
I only had a few days of leave left, and I sadly realized I couldn't take her with me. Especially with the gas mileage at aircraft carrier fuel consumption rates. On the last night, I took my friend out for a spin, and very soon after leaving the driveway we could smell something burning. It was too foggy to drive fast, so we turned around and went home. I ended up leaving the car at my friends garage, which happens to live only a couple houses down from my dads. Here is the car next to his yellow V6 Mustang:
We pulled the windshield wiper motor, the dashboard, the heater blower assembly, cut out random disconnected (and unsafe) wires and taped them up, and cleaned and vacuumed any debris.
I loaded the dashboard and wire harness into my car to take back to Cali so I could be somewhat productive for the next 6+ months.
Later my friend discovered that the wire harness caught fire in the engine bay! And the harness I had, was melted in multiple places. I decided to scrap it. I will need an entirely new wire harness.
What I have been doing
Research. Researching like a crazy person. I have also been buying parts like crazy and shipping them to Oregon.
Since I'm stuck here, I:
-Fixed the Dash Cracks / Sanded / Painted
-New Vents
-New glove box setup and badge
-Autometer gauges
-Realized the wire harness I had was hopeless after attempting repair
My Friend has been inspecting parts that I send him, and tinkering on the car.
-Sold Engine / Tranny / Radiator / exhaust for 750.00
-Sold Bumper
-Sold Fuel tank
Has a total of 1k. So the car as a roller was 2,500. Even cheaper!
What Happens Now
I am taking 30 days of leave starting on 20July2016. I plan to:
-Sell the Honda
-Engine Swap the Z to an LS motor.
-Make the 240z my new DD.
Here is the car as it is today. My friend installed the $420.00 Fender Mirrors, and there is the photo of the horrible quality Retro-Spec spoiler sitting on the hatch just to see what it looks like:
That's it for now. Later I will post shots of my excel sheet of costs, future plans, ect.

Well time the time has come. Life is happening and decisions must be made.
First off, I want to make this clear to everyone interested; I am not in a situation where I am being forced to sell the Z. I still very much enjoy working on her and taking her out for a drive. So why am I selling it? The direction I want to go in life is going to have me away from the world of cars for a bit, and I do intend to return back to the addiction that is Z cars, but until then she needs a good partner.
Having been through a couple of Zs before, I wanted to take a different approach with this one. Not a restoration, but more of a reliable mild tune car for just fun cruising and possibly a daily driver. Plus, if I wanted to increase the power later I would have the ability to. I had heard about the V-8 swaps that were popular back in the day and so decided to go that route. Ford vs Chevy? Based on the information I found and hours of research I settled on a small block Chevy. With the Jags that Run guide, decided on what is seems to be a strong, reliable engine, the 5.7L LT1.
This is a 1976 280z that has been modified based off the Jags that Run handbook, to now house a 1995 LT1 drivetrain. So what we’re talking about here is a 5.7 liter (a true 350 Z haha…) LT1 from a 1995 Corvette, a T56 Transmission and custom drive shaft to fit it all in her. The differential is a R200 differential which would be sufficient for me wants and needs. What this also meant was that incase anything required more work that I could do, or had time for, I would be able to take it to a Chevy dealership and they would be able to work on it from engine up to the differential.
Now time for the actual build and changes made to the Z!
Exterior
Keeping in the front of the Z, headlights were upgraded to Dapper Lighting’s HID retrofit. Decided this time around to go with their new (at the time) larger projector lights with the 5000k lighting. Most of the driving I did was during the day anyways, but there’s probably 30 hours of run time on the bulbs. So basically new.
Suspension, went with new shocks and new springs, dropped the car about an inch. Sits low enough that it looks nice but doesn’t affect suspension or other geometry on the car i.e. tires don’t bottom out.
Gauges were replaced with speedhut gauges. The Speedo and Tach have been fit into the original housing sleeve to have a stock/modern look to it. Current gauges that are in there consist of a speedometer/tachometer on the steering column. Center stack consists of oil pressure, fuel gauge and temperature gauge.
Cut out a hole for mounting a speaker in the storage compartments behind the seats. Just nice to have some tunes running in the background sometimes while driving. Car has enough power to run an amp and be able to push better/louder speakers, but at the time this was not much of a concern of mine.
Moving on to the rear of the car, fuel door was removed/welded shut and blended in with the rest of the car to have a clean look. Gas tank and rear spare tire area was cut out and a 16 gallon fuel cell was installed.
Tires I had on it during the build where some American Racing wheels. Didn’t look good on her at all, but did the job while moving and building. Those have been replaced with Konig Rewinds 16 x 7 in the silver/chrome color. The tires I decided to go with were the BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Comp 2. I bought these through Discount Tire since they had the best price for everything, had them install the matching tire stems and all 4 tires have their refund/replacement certificate warranty. I would need to see if this is transferrable to a new owner. I also purchased a locking lug kit for the tires. Since the mounting of the wheels I have driven a little under a thousand miles on them…so brand new really.
Windshield developed a crack, so had it replaced with a new one. Was able to get one with the small blue tint strip up at the top, which the previous one had turned brown after 40 years. All doors and windows have new seals and strips. Windshield doesn’t leak in the corners.
Wipers still work, speeds consisting of slow and less slow, not that they were ever used but still. Front and rear bumper were removed, with the rear area being blended away, and the front still has the indents from it. Front airdam was installed to complete the lines of the car.
Bushing were all replaced on the car. Steering has no slack/dead spot, and car corners and drives on rails. Very nice feel overall. Breaks are stock setup, with discs in front and drums in back. I don’t drive it hard to the point I needed the extra stopping power, plus with the cost of doing a conversion, I was going to leave that for after the interior was done to my liking.
I painted the car a blue hue, official name is Daytona Blue Pearl. Car was sanded and smoothed to create as flat as a surface as possible. Car was then primed and about 6 coats of paint and 4 coats of clear where laid down. Is it a 100 point car? Nope. Has its minor imperfections, but you would not notice them unless you were up close and specifically looking for them. Door jambs where painted as well as the engine compartment and underneath the hood. Only part that was not sprayed was underneath the inspection lids. Wheel wells and area behind the grill were sprayed with rubber coating to blacken and cover the areas.
Grill was never added, was looking for a suitable style, but left it open for now.
Did notice that there is a crack/dent in the paint on the rear passenger quarter panel, nickel/penny size. Doesn't bother me much, its not a garage queen, but its there.
Interior
Interior of the car was next on the list of things to do, but did start with a minor refresh. Carpet and trunk carpet is new. Radio/speakers, gauges and A/C unit are aftermarket. New panels were bought and installed to replace cracked/worn ones. What was remaining was the door panels and center console. The center console is not in a bad condition, but the plastic is getting old and brittle, and if you’re going to make it look sleek, best to change it out.
Dashboard has a cap, so I am assuming it is cracked.
Oil pressure gauge is not reading. The gauge works, but the sender unit from the motor does not seem to be working. Would need to be checked out and replaced.
Fuel gauge is not reading correctly. Reads Empty when cell is full, reads Full as cell empties. Though signal was backwards, tested wires to see, was not able to correct the issue. Left it as is for now but problem might be in the sender unit. I know I get about 200 miles to the tank, so I use that to gauge gas.
I accidently over calculated the amount of dynomat I thought I would need, so instead of letting it go to waste, in a bout of military genius, I went ahead and dynomatted the entire interior. Definetly cut down on the noise and heat transfer. At the cost of some extra weight sure, but it’s a 5.7 V8…not much of a concern there…
Engine
Engine was rebuilt, with the pistons being replaced with forged ones for reliability and incase I would decide to push the motor at a later point in time. EFI and wiring system was all removed and replaced with a Holley 4 barrel (4160). Installed MSD distributor.
Transmission was also rebuilt, to make sure that engine and tranny would be as solid as possible.
Adapter bracket was fitted so that I could also run an A/C system in the Z. Certain things I could forgo but A/C was not one of them. A/C system also now has a modern electric heater, good for defrosting the front on those cool spring or fall days. Alternator is also a slightly upgraded model than what JTR recommended. Necessary? Probably not, but it was the same price as the recommended one. Memory fails me, but want to say from a later year Camaro?
Electric fan is mounted on the radiator. Never had any problems with her overheating, even when sitting in traffic with the A/C running in the summer. This was in DC this summer, and last year in the summer. Quite hot if anyone was around there then.
Dual exhaust was installed and the rear end was modified to create a clean look with the bottom edge tucking in under the car a bit. Mufflers stick out about an inch, nothing crazy. They are straight pipes, so no cats. Means the growl is louder and the smell is stronger. Can’t tell with the windows closed and the A/C running, but like a true Z, open the windows and you’ll have a nice smell flow back in.
So that’s what has been done to the car, as best as I can remember. The car has not been tracked or drag raced. . Again, the Z was worked on to make it as reliable of a driver as possible. I enjoy working on cars, but I enjoy driving them more. Decided to put it all to test by driving it from Virginia to Illinois and back. Zero issues there and back, and the drive and ride itself was an absolute blast. This was done on the old tires and rims. I helped a friend move from Virginia to Ohio, where I hauled the Z to. From there, with the Konigs and Sport Comps, I drove it from Ohio to Illinois. That was the most mileage put on those tires, the rest has simply been local driving around town.
What will be included with the sale, will be everything Z related that I own and have acquired over the years. I could probably sell the extra parts separately but time and convenience is the biggest factor for me right now.
Reference List
Rebuilt 5.7L LT1 with forged pistons
Holley carb installed in place of EFI
Rebuilt T56 Transmission
Custom driveshaft
A/C and heater fitment
New/Fresh paint with clear, Daytona Blue Pearl
New bushings
Dual exhaust, straight pipe (no cat)
New shocks and coils, lowered 1 inch
HID headlight upgrade
Shaved gas door
Shaved and blended rear end
16 gallon fuel cell
New door seals
Speedhut gauges
Konig Rewinds 16 x 7, silver with matching stems
Locking lugnuts
GForce Sport Comps 2 (less than 1000 miles on them)
MSD dizzy
Included with sale:
1 quart paint for touchup or recoatings
Fiberglass hood
Fiberglass hatch, with glass installed
Set of 4 American Racing rims and tires with lugs. Tires need to be replaced.
Various set of original gauges and gauge housings.
Left and right door windows
Left and right quarter windows
Right passenger seat in white vinyl, pretty good condition, from a ‘77
Taillight trim and panels from ’77 Z, good condition.
There is more in a couple of boxes that is in storage in Ohio which I will be picking up here soon, but some of the stuff that I remember off the top of my head:
Holly rebuild kit and various carb parts, manuals and paperwork for A/C unit, various component boxes and paperwork, speaker parts, glove box liner and door, various weather stripping and seals, bushing kits
I will be updating this thread with the stuff that is in the boxes as soon as I can get my eyes on them again. Updated pictures will be included as well, weather hasn’t been cooperating much here to allow a cleaning and pictures. In the mean time, I have uploaded pictures of the car when it was done being painted (note the stylish American Racing rims....haha) and the various parts in the car
All of the hard work has been done, with only minor bits and pieces that need to be completed. I have contact information for a guy on the forum that makes fiberglass door panels, I can put you in contact with him if interested.
Since the engine build up until now, there are almost 3000 miles done on it. I have done synthetic oil in all my cars, this was is no different. Initial oil change was done at 500 miles for any metal burns that might be in there, and I just changed the oil again, with 5W-20 synthetic. Oil filter is Royal Purple.
Serious inquiries only please! No tire kickers, no joy rides.
Any questions feel free to PM me. You can post it on here, but I may not respond to it right away.
1976 Datsun 280z with 5.7L LT1 v8 from a 1995 Corvette
Approximate miles on build: 3,000 miles
$16,000

Hello!
i have seen multiple videos where people have engine swapped a 280z with an Ls1 from a corvette! If i were to buy an engine and transmission from ebay or craigslist, how hard is this swap to do and what parts are essential? i have looked on other forums and haven't found much on the topic.
Thanks for any replies!

ok I am going to blow through a lot of questions here I have a 1971 240Z i upgraded the alternator and now my dash and running lights stay on anytime the key is on what could cause this? Second last monday i swaped a 79 280 f54block n42 head with the biggest cam you can get without going to larger valve springs i bought the motor this way i put my brand new ztherapy 4 screw su carbs on it with the msa 6to1 header and the orignal bosch distributer and e12-80 module but it wont run right it backfires through the carbs when you rev it I did get it to run the other day long enough to set the valves at .012 exhaust .010 intake but Im not sure the coil is right it has a pretronix 3.0 ohm coil from the kit I put on the 240 motor when i got it i also tried a crane cam lx91 and it got worse so I switched back to the pretronix my plug gap is .042 i just need a starting place iv done everything i know how to do to no avail. what am I not seeing?

Hey guys I'm looking for a complete turbo swap for my 240z. What I'm looking for is the engine forward (no trans)..preferably a p90'd complete engine w/everything etc. I have prepped my 240sx tranny to mate with a earlier series engine.
As for location, I'm out of Monterey, California. Reply with pictures preferred.
(415) four seven zero- 8674

Hello everybody,
I was wondering if it would be possible and cost effective to swap out the engine in my 1978 280 for a 5.7L L98 engine out of a 1990 iroc-z Camaro? Is this possible? Would it be worth the money it would cost or would buying a new LS1 crate engine be more cost effective? I ask because I need a car for this summer and this Camaro is for sale with 50k miles on it for under 4000$. So i was wondering if I could kill two birds with one stone by getting both a cheap car in good condition and an engine for my Z. Is this a good idea or am I crazy? Thanks in advance for any input you guys have.